MADISON, Wis. – The Edgewood College Eagles women's volleyball squad opened up the Todd Wehr Edgedome Thursday evening. They played host to the Alverno Inferno in their first Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference (NACC) matchup of the season. The Eagles (4-3, 1-0 NACC) dispatched the Inferno (0-6, 0-1) in an 3-1 (25-12, 19-25, 25-15, 25-8) affair.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- Edgewood College started out strong in the opening salvos. They jumped out to a 7-3 lead before breaking things wide open with another 7-3 sprint for a 14-6 advantage. The Eagles finished off the first frame with seven unanswered points to take a 1-0 lead in the match.
- The two squads traded blows back and forth, but Alverno's offense coupled with Edgewood College mistakes fueled a 6-1 rally to give the inferno a 12-9 lead. A 5-1 follow up would push the Alverno lead into dangerous territory at 17-12. The Eagles' offense rallied with a 5-1 sprint pushing them within one, but a 7-2 finisher from the Inferno evened the match at 1-1.
- Edgewood College bounced back early in set three, a 7-1 run putting them ahead 7-3. Alverno mistakes pushed the lead even further to a 13-6 margin, but the Inferno would find a spark with a 6-2 reply to push within 15-12. The Eagle offense clicked on all cylinders in a 10-3 barrage to earn their second point of the match.
- Edgewood College finished off the match with a no-doubter fourth set. An
Ashley Bruehlman service run led to 12 unanswered points for the Eagles and a 15-3 lead. Edgewood College refused to let up, closing the book on the set and match with a 10-5 advantage.
- The Eagles had a tandem of setters on the night.
Kate Gunderson finished with 20 assists, one shy of her career best, while
Abbey Eivins had 15 and
Abigail Hoffmann seven respectively.
- Bruehlman continued her strong start to the season with five aces, nine kills, and eight digs.
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Ciera Fletcher tallied career bests in assists (two) and digs (six) as she saw time in the libero role.
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Katie Borchert excelled in the home opener. She tallied 13 kills with a .571 hitting percentage on 21 swings.
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE
- Borchert's .571 attack percentage tied for sixth all-time on the single match records list and was her second-best qualifying attack percentage as an Eagle.
- Bruehlman's five service aces was her season-best and tied her Edgewood College best.
- The Eagles hold a 26-0 series lead over Alverno.
UP NEXT
Edgewood College will hit the road for a tri-match in Kenosha, Wis. Saturday afternoon. They will play against North Park Vikings with first serve scheduled for 3:00 p.m. followed by the Carthage Firebirds at 5:00 p.m. The Eagles have a 2-1 series lead over the receiving-votes Vikings and have lost eight in a row to the Firebirds.
